On Being Gluten-Free (Which We're Not)

A Facebook friend of mine posted this article last week and I can't get it out of my head.  Essentially, it's on the popularity of the gluten-free diet these days.  The author, comparing it to the popularity of MSG-intolerance a while back, postulates that in many cases, gluten intolerance is mainly psychosomatic.  You get the idea that certain foods are bad for you, then you start noticing symptoms ranging from indigestion to the inability to breathe - which he believes is a result of the placebo effect.  You may be experiencing real symptoms, but they're created by your mind.

Interesting, no?

First of all, I do agree that gluten-intolerance is somewhat of a fad right now.  I suspect not everyone off gluten is actually intolerant of it.  Second, I think that's a great thing for those who actually have celiac's disease or are allergic to wheat.  There's a whole industry giving them more options!  And the increased awareness means that eating with others is an easier experience (sometimes).

We're not gluten-free.  Our diet is not too far from it - most allergy-friendly recipes automatically cut out gluten.  Regardless, Kekoa's dairy and egg allergies make a similar point.

Consider the classic church potluck.  This is what Kekoa and I can't eat:

• Potato Salad
• Macaroni Salad
• Fruit ambrosia
• Salads and slaws with creamy dressings (caesar, Ranch, Blue cheese, etc.)
• Almost any Mexican or Italian dish (usually have cheese)
• Fried foods
• Some hot dog and burger brands (some contain eggs)
• Some hot dog or burger bun brands
• Some deli meats
• Flavored chips (sour cream and onion, nacho, etc.)
• Cream based chip dips
• Sweet breads
• Cakes
• Cookies
• Brownies
• Ice cream
• Chocolate (dark only...but who brings dark chocolate to a potluck?)

And this is what we can eat:

• Veggies
• Salads and slaws with oil, vinegar, or citrus based dressings
• Fruit
• Tortilla chips with salsa or guacamole
• Baked Beans
• 100% Beef Burgers (with condiments other than mayo)

You get the idea.  THAT'S the power of the gluten/egg/dairy-free diet.  We don't gorge on potluck foods.  We can't walk down the aisle of convenience foods.  We don't help ourselves to baked goods at a friend's house. 

I make no claims to being dairy- and gluten- intolerant.  But I feel better after eliminating or cutting back on those foods because that automatically eliminates 90% of accessible junk food (you can, of course, buy or make your own junk food alternatives, but they're expensive and/or time-consuming).  

Additionally, even though I don't think dairy is all bad for you, it is heavy and can be difficult to digest (wheat is the same).  And I never realized HOW MUCH the typical American diet includes until we cut it out. 

I can completely understand someone kickstarting a diet by going gluten-free. Dieting based on self-control is too personal.  It requires too much work, and carries with it a sense of shame if you fail.  Dieting based on a medical condition - or heck, even just a hard-to-digest food - is so appealing.

Not only is a medical condition easier to diet with, but people are much more understanding.  I would feel like such a high maintenance little princess asking our host to accommodate a dairy-free diet based on my personal opinion of "healthy."  I'd probably be labelled an obsessed, misguided health nut.  But people are happy to accommodate allergies.  

Why is that important?  Because I can attest that the absolute, most difficult part of dieting - for allergies or otherwise - is watching people eat the foods you love and not being able to eat them.  I rather enjoyed our diet until we had to leave the home.  Eating at restaurants can be torture, as you pick from your tiny store of bland options ("sorry, you can't have anything on the dessert menu") while others feast on rich, creamy dishes.

It also matters how people react to your food choices.  Even I have gotten flak: "Well, why don't you just wean him?  Then we could give him baby food or something and cook normally for everyone else."    We're trying to do a healthy thing here - but people don't like to be inconvenienced by our choices.

*sigh*

Anyway, that's my semi-rant.  Yes, I do agree with the article - I think that gluten intolerance is sometimes not actually initiated by the body.  But going gluten-free, at least for a time? Well, I don't think that's such a bad idea.  We've learned so much more about what we put in our mouths, how it affects our bodies long-term, and how little variety the Western diet actually has.  

I hope to once again have dairy and eggs grace our kitchen, someday.  But in the meantime, we're learning how to incorporate different foods in our everyday diet.  So maybe next time, some of those not-so-good foods will stay out for good.

Just a few things.

I like warmer weather and all, but a part of me mourns the winter days when missing a spot while shaving doesn't matter.  Also, toe nail polish.  I really dislike painting my toe nails.

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As I write, the child is eating...raw onions.  He's an odd one. Maybe I need to stop trying to get him to eat beef and chicken and need to start giving him things like liver and headcheese.  He seems to prefer really strong, almost obnoxious flavors.

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Really, this whole kinda-sorta-vegan is a lot more fun that I thought it would.  It's been amazing enough that I think we'll stick with the low dairy diet even when/if he outgrows his allergy.  If we do eat dairy, it will probably be yogurt.  I always blamed produce for being too expensive, but actually without dairy products eating up our budget we have produce coming out of our ears.

But note: don't just cut dairy cold turkey.  Either cut back slowly or go through a full detox diet.  We all got pretty sick.

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In my generation it's very trendy to be creative and do your own projects, cook your own food, alter your own clothes (or get them from thrift shops), etc.  I think that's a great trend.

What I don't think is a great trend is the compulsive need to post every single little outfit/meal/DIY project on Facebook/Pinterest/Instagram.  It makes me wonder: do we actually value creativity, artistry, or frugality?  Or do we just want the praise for doing the trendy thing?

I understand it for small businesses and blogs dedicated to a particular thing, but we seem to have an inordinate need that our work be applauded.

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My pastor posted an article (sorry, I can't find it) the other day.  I really appreciate that he passes on really great thoughts each week.  This particular article was written to parents; essentially it says that we are the guardians of our child's cyberpresence.  The pictures and statuses we post may not go away. So don't post anything that you wouldn't post if your 13-year-old child was standing over your shoulder.  That was a little convicting.

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Avocado.  Oh my goodness. I made chocolate avocado pudding the other day, and it was AMAZING.  One drawback: it looked horrible.  I wouldn't ever serve it to a guest because of the look.  The recipe I used didn't include almond milk, though, so maybe it would be creamier and smoother with the milk.  So what do you think: would you try something like this?

And the verdict is:

Eggs, milk, and peanuts.

Those are the culprits and have been causing the horrible red itchiness on my baby for the past five months.

Both Kekoa and I are on an egg-free, diary-free, peanut-free diet, and my goodness, he's like a completely different baby.

1.  The eczema is nearly gone.  There's still a little in his elbow and knee creases, and this morning this was an itty-bitty patch on his neck.  But for the first time in months, his torso is baby soft.

2.  He's eating better.  The doctor said his mouth and nose were swollen from the allergens.  He's never been a good eater and spit a lot of food out, but we're seeing improvement in that area!  He's accepting new foods readily.  He still refuses some foods we had previously given him - I'm thinking maybe he associates their tastes with discomfort?  So he's still not a *great* eater, but I feel for the first time he's getting a significant amount of nutrition from solid food.

3.  He's sleeping better.  The combo of the itchiness and the poor eating led to frequent night wake-ups where he was either hungry or needed a lotion application.  And now for three nights in a row he's slept 8 hours!  He hasn't slept that well since before he was mobile and burning more calories.

4.  He's, er, functioning better.  His little digestive system seems to have figured things out!

My initial reaction was relief.  I first noticed reflux-like symptoms at two weeks, when he had crying fits where he arched his back often.  I went on a total elimination diet, slowly introducing things back in.  But as he got older, he spit up more and screamed less, so I never knew if the problem was solved.

I second-guessed myself a lot regarding that.  No one else was ever there for the screaming episodes, so sometimes I wondered whether I had imagined it.  Maybe all babies cried like that?  Maybe I was clueless as to his baby language?  Maybe I wasn't fulfilling his needs so he kept crying?

And now I know!  He actually did have reflux based on food sensitivities.  While I'm not happy about that, it is relieving to know that my mommy intuition is happily intact, and that I wasn't just ignoring some other need that he had.  :)

Anyway, I'm actually getting quite excited about this whole diet change.  It's a good motivation to scrutinize our diet and eat healthier.  I have to get creative about making up the missing nutrients and proteins from other food sources, but most baked goods are automatically out.  That's not a bad thing.  

According to that all-trusty source the internet, a significant number of kids grow out of milk and egg allergies by the time they're four.  About 86% of kids grow out of them by sixteen.  So we're hoping that eventually he won't have to be the kid at birthday parties who isn't allowed to eat the cake.

On the other hand, only 20% ever outgrow peanut allergies.  It's nice to meet you, almond butter.

Why Hello, July

Wait. Where did that month go?

Or maybe the more accurate question would be, "wait, where did that blog go?"  It got lost in the day-to-day whirlwind that is preparing for the fall.  So I present to you, in five parts: Our July. It turned into a multi-theme month that is cultivating a lot of good habits.

FLYing all the way home

July has been a "get-the-apartment-in-order" month, Flylady style.  Yes, the bane of our existence growing up who was always making us throw away old toys has been this month's theme as we prepare for our move.

It's been great.  Not only is the apartment in apple-pie order, but we've gotten rid of so much junk.  All those baggy clothes, old t-shirts in excess, single earrings, kitchenware that we have duplicates of, all those ratty old college twin bedsets - gone.  Woohoo.  I even got Josh to part with his terrible bright yellow and red tie.

Plus, we're practically packed for the move. Everything we're not planning on using in the next three weeks is packed away, labelled, and color-coded by room.  So this is going to be a pretty easy move, I think, and all because we're spending ten minutes a day on preparations.

Returning to my first "love"


I compiled my book list for "books to get through while Josh is in grad school".  There's about 90 books on my list, and so far this month I've read three.  Currently I am working on "The Little Prince" in Spanish.   After the post-college burnout, I read a little bit, but not a whole lot.  Now I've remembered what it is to love reading again, and to spend hours curled up with a book.  And Josh is reading right along with me!

Staying fit and having fun


Each day we are spending 15-20 minutes working out.  Three days a week this means cardio workouts - running, roller blading, ultimate frisbee, tennis.  The other days it means strength training + easy cardio - walking, cleaning, etc.  But the rule is to not let them be a "workout", but to be fun.  We're playing tennis during our lunch break once a week, and now we're hitting the trails on roller blades on weekends.  :)

A surprise improvement

Since I was about 9 and running track, I have always gotten a lot of headaches.  I blamed this on computer time, allergies, sleep deprivation...all of the above.  I never in a million years suspected dehydration, because I drink a lot of water.  I carry a water bottle with me at all times and sip from it all day, drinking almost nothing else. For the past three years, I've been drinking the recommended amount of water of 64oz. a day - in fact, a little more.

So I thought my headaches weren't related to dehydration at all.  But then early this month, I decided to drink until at no point during the day I was thirsty. If I'm thirsty, I drink until I no longer want anything to drink.

On the first day, I drank three liters (~101 ozs).

So for a week, I put three rubber bands on my water bottle and took one off each time I drank a liter.

NO HEADACHES!

All that time, I thought I was getting enough water because I was drinking the "recommended" amount.  Turns out my body needs more water than that - just like it needs more sleep than the average person (yes, my body wants 10 hours of sleep to be truly happy).  Now I'm drinking 3-4 liters a day, and I feel so much better.

So the moral of the story is you're probably dehydrated right now.  Go drink some water.

A new era

Josh and I made a commitment that for the first year of our marriage, we would intentionally avoid making too many commitments and instead really focus on intentionally getting to know each other. And that year is over. It's been wonderful.

Josh starts grad school next month and we'll have less time together.  If that had happened last fall, I feel certain our marriage would have been much less fun.   I will miss him like crazy on those nights he is gone, but at least I know we had a fabulous year where our first priority was simply to get used to being married.

August: the Demise of the Photo Faker


So yes, Mom, I'm a photo faker.  Maybe it was growing up with a mom who has a camera bag permanently attached to her shoulder.  But I don't take pictures.  Ever.  If something noteworthy happens, someone else has a camera, right? And they'll post them on facebook, because that's all people do with pictures now anyway.

Next month, my theme will be to take a picture a day.  And to post it.  So it will be a blog post a day. Another two-fer.  :)

That's all for now!  A nice long post to make up for not posting ever.  :P

End of the Month

Since my husband is trying to revive his facebook, I figure I should try to post a little more on my blog.

Plus, I finished my full month of running.  How was it? Great.  I feel better, I worked some steam out on the more stressful days (which helps a little in the marriage department!), and it made me more conscious of what it means to be "healthy".

To be honest, I didn't quite make my goal of exercising every day - but then every other day is a big improvement as well.  I did have to stop for a while because I caught a cold, but otherwise, I made great leaps and bounds and was able to meet my goal!

Someone once told me that physical fitness isn't about how far you can go or pushing yourself to the max.  It's about staying healthy and keeping in good shape so that if you ever NEED to kick it up a notch, you can. So I intend to keep up the progress I have made by continuing my routine 3 days a week - not necessarily with the goal of getting faster or running longer, but just with the goal of staying fit and healthy.

In other news, so begins a new month!  We have a keyboard and a flute sitting in our apartment that rarely get used.  So this month is about brushing up on my music!  I'm try to alternate the two...with the keyboard, the challenge is reading those left-hand notes.  Playing the flute for so many years has my eye automatically trained to read the treble clef, and now I'm terribly at translating to the bass clef.  On the flute, my challenge will be finger fumblings, and smooth breath control.  Time to work that diaphragm!

And so begins a new month. Newly off from a fabulous Alaskan vacation, DONE with financial audits, and now getting back on top of things at work.  I feel like things have definitely taken a turn for the less-hectic!

Lesson of the Week

Never ever take a financial position one month before the end of the fiscal year, esp. if you are a non-profit organization. Because the annual audit WILL happen the week after your brother-in-law graduates and you lose your student interns and your husband's family comes into town, and which coincidentally is the week before you leave for vacation and really don't want to be in a stressful situation.   And because you didn't actually work there for most of the year, you will be asked all kinds of questions that you don't know the answer to ("so did this funding come through this source? And when you said x donation went through y campaign, what made you say that?"   Me: Ummmm....sure, I think so.  And I didn't say that.  Because I wasn't actually working here.")

Whew.

And because I am in a highly busy part of the year and working with some very stressed coworkers (seriously. At our meeting today I could feel the stress in the room absorbing into my bloodstream), I am very very grateful for my running goal.

Because I am keeping it!  And it feels good.  :)

I might not actually meet the running goal in miles and minutes for the month.  My allergies seriously impair my running ability, because they seriously impair my breathing ability, and that's just a little important to a runner.

But that's okay, because it's gotten me exercising every day, whether it's running or walking to the grocery store or playing frisbee with the neighbor kid.  And since I feel good and have a chance to let off some steam, getting to work and finding things like a leaky refrigerator that desperately needs to be defrosted doesn't really bother me.

So the moral of the story is: audits are stressful.  But running is fun and mind-clearing and good.  :)